1. Technical Field
The present invention relates generally to protective cushioning devices for use in transport and storage of shock sensitive products. In particular, the present invention relates to cushions that are made from molded polymeric materials, and which are particularly intended for use with shock sensitive products such as computer components such as optical drives.
2. Description of the Related Art
Product cushioning devices utilized for protecting shock sensitive products have been developed to address ever changing transport and storage requirements. A number of different techniques for cushioning products have been developed over the years, each having its own particular advantages and/or disadvantages. For example, it has been known for many years to cushion shock sensitive devices or merchandise using flexible, shock absorbent materials such as loosely packed paper, bubble wrap, polystyrene pellets (“peanuts”), gas-filled bladders, etc., to provide “filler” cushioning within a product container.
The market introduction of complex and expensive electronics devices together with the continual quest for greater packaging and shipment efficiency has prompted more stringent packaging and cushioning design. More precise standards and testing procedures have been developed for assuring that cushioning devices adequately protect shock sensitive products from shock accelerations greater than the product's fragility level while minimizing the form factor of packaging containers.
The need for more product-specific cushioning and reduced packaging form factor has given rise to using packaging and cushioning devices that provide combined bracing/cushioning properties. Such products include honeycomb cardboard, and various foamed polymers—polystyrene, polyurethane, polypropylene, and polyethylene. Such bracing/cushioning devices are deployed as corner pieces or edge pieces and enhance product protection by restricting shifting of the product within the container such that the cushioning effect of the overall packaging apparatus can be more reliably established. The more rigid of such cushioning materials, such as foamed polystyrene products, are often utilized as corner pieces or end caps. Such end caps are often product specific, having a particularly contoured mold conforming to the contour of a particular product.
A problem with conventional blow molded cushioning is the reliance on material properties and static structural properties, such as bearing area, to provide the required cushioning. Given the aforementioned need to balance specific cushioning requirements with shipping density requirements, substantial cost and time must be invested to design and produce specialized cushions for each new product development or modification.
Another problem is that polymer foam-type cushioning devices have limited reusability. For some such devices, such as foamed polystyrene, this is due in part, to the relative bulk and unwieldiness of such foam cushioning devices, which are usually discarded with the packaging container in which the product was shipped. Furthermore, many such foamed cushioning devices are highly frangible once they have been removed from the packaging container in which the product was shipped. Another significant factor limiting reusability is the material fatigue resulting from reliance on the material properties and static structural properties (e.g. bearing area). The deformation and other material affects of repeated use in cushioning render the cushioning performance unpredictable.
It can be appreciated that a need exists for an improved cushioning end cap design that addresses the foregoing problems. The cushion end cap addresses the foregoing problems as well as others not addresses by the prior art.